October 2017 Sustainable Development

Read the articles selected in October 2017

The World Economic Forum has underlined the importance of leaving aside messages of divisions and despair, an easy solution to the failure of politics that has completely lost touch with the reality of a class-divided society and the everyday people struggling to have a say in the decisions that affect them.

At the recent CPC National Congress President Xi Jinping has announced a new Chinese era, a socialism inspired by the 2030 Agenda’s ecological and social principles but with Chinese characteristics. A programme which though not mentioning the human rights imagines a shared humankind future.

The gap between institutions and cities is a problem but also an incentive to innovation for the necessarily established government forms. This Report, elaborated in a university environment, for its proper vocation to recognize the signals of change, means to carry out a leap in political planning.

Whether we believe in climate change and its catastrophic future, or not, we have first to account for the immediate consequences of increasing temperatures on our health. A communication well-done of scientific evidence can change regulations and the course of the world.

In his message for 2017, UN Secretary–General António Gutierrez evokes the strength of the willingness to overcome the many grave challenges the world is to face, from conflicts and nuclear wars to inequalities and extreme weather. But all these threats are our collective destiny.

Social injustices affect whole economies and nations. Inequalities are not only a question of income but also of equal access to fundamental rights. Women’ reproductive health, the prevention of unwelcome and teenage pregnancies, as well child marriages, are a milestone for sustainable development.

Helping the economy of a poor country is a too easy solution for mass migrations, that have deeper and also traumatic drivers and triggers. After this report, the migratory politics of European institutions are blocked in an impasse because they don’t enhance the positive aspects of the flows.

With the increasing average of aged people across OECD countries, reduced pension outcomes, unemployment and low earning experienced in the working age, some groups of future retirees will have to face with dramatic life conditions. This report proposes a strategy of action.

Phlegrean Fields are a network of craters stretched under Naples metropolitan area, whose eruptions in the past have caused catastrophic global events. Although scientists fear an imminent explosion, unlike for earthquakes, for volcanoes there are precursors that they monitor at any time.

The association BRCA France is engaged for the extension of the BRCA1 e BRCA2 genetic texts to all the women affected by a metastatic tumor. The genetic research saves the life of one woman out of four bearing the mutation, responsible for breast and ovary cancer.

Despite the heightened awareness of gender inequalities, gender gaps persist at every level of development, in both public and private life, as well in the workplace. Female education is crucial but not enough to eliminate inequities and cultural barriers. Violence against women is still a widespread issue.

We’re facing the possibility of antibiotic apocalypse-this is how it could be stopped

by Carel Du Marchie Sarvaas

Source: The Independent, 9 October

The health of humans and animals are intrinsically linked. The animal health industry is developing new vaccines, diagnostics, and nutritional supplements to reduce the use of antibiotics and tackle the most dangerous drug-resistant disease risks. This global health emergency needs cooperation and innovation.

A new book co-edited by 30 experts in disparate fields shows how different the human existence could be, compared to today, if in the urbanization of the planet we hold our touch with nature, other species and venerated the green spaces as citizens, institutions, and the marketplace.

Five undergraduate women at Harvard College tell their holiday spent doing research abroad by local communities about ecological problems and sustainable development, experienced with a human and interdisciplinary approach which proposes solutions with both practical and political implications.

A coalition of 40 Roman Catholic groups inspired by the figure of Saint Francis and the Encyclical Laudato Si of Pope Francis is urging action to disinvest from fossil fuels and prepare the financial conditions for a carbon-neutral economy.

This Report by Asvis assesses the condition of Italy as regards the several themes of the 2030 Agenda, in order to accelerate the cultural and legislative change needed to fill the gap with the other European countries and to eliminate the wide inequalities present in our country.

Ending hunger and achieving food security in the world needs a more comprehensive understanding of food security, assessed in more differentiated dimensions and in the nutritional and not nutritional consequences on child growth. The study includes also rich countries.

The achieved scientific understanding of the role played by microbiome, diet, and nutrition in the development of complex diseases is expected to lead to innovative approaches and policies on science, to new regulatory frameworks on food and focused clinical and research programming.

Deep and rapid decarbonization depends on country-specific political dynamics and cultural discourses, industry strategies, as well civil society pressures, in order to legitimate low-carbon policies. A technological transition should integrate different systems phasing out backward structures progressively.

The rise in drug-resistant infections in animals and humans has been linked to the inappropriate use of antimicrobials in livestock. The combination of regulations to limit it, a low meat animals diet and increased costs can achieve meaningful results for global health.

A new educational model is needed to prepare students for a quickly changing digital and automated world, which requires both creative and analytical skills grounded on a strong linguistic and scientific literacy. Education links knowledge to the society. The priority to education is a mark for a future-ready policy.

Through globalization we have discovered the world, exchanging goods and ideas. To cope with the challenges of our day, from migration flows to terrorism, from financial crisis to epidemics or climate change, the world needs more knowledge, and knowledge is spurred by global cooperation.

Meeting the hopes and expectations of European citizens doesn’t mean just to distribute the benefits of economic growth fairly. Technological change and the society of knowledge can create new forms of poverty and exclusion. Fostering equal opportunities in education is a matter of social justice and cohesion.

Europe is first of all a Union of freedom, from oppression and to give voice your opinion. Europe protects the intellectual property, the cultural diversity, gives cultural life to solidarity. Europe’s law tradition has set up the Paris Climate Agreement.

The sustainable development starts from education because it requires skills and a change of mentality.The plan for the education to sustainability by the Italian minister of Education has adopted the 2030 Agenda’s Goals in a wide cross programme addressed to the all actors of education as citizens of the country.